Free agency is now just under a month away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up. There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in late July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. Pittsburgh took care of one notable free agent today but they still have some regulars in need of new contracts.
Key Restricted Free Agents
F Zach Aston-Reese – The 26-year-old was a highly sought-after college free agent back in 2017 and while he hasn’t emerged as a big scoring threat, Aston-Reese has become a valuable checker for the Penguins, holding down a regular spot on the roster for the last two seasons. He had a career-high nine goals in 45 games this season while chipping in with a pair of points in six playoff games, numbers that aren’t going to command a sizable raise. His qualifying offer is $1MM and even though he’s eligible for salary arbitration, the potential for a hearing isn’t too much of a risk. Aston-Reese is in line for a small raise but it shouldn’t break the bank for a Penguins team that is already pretty tight to the cap.
F Mark Jankowski – After being non-tendered by Calgary back in the fall, Jankowski opted to take a league minimum contract in the hopes that a new environment in Pittsburgh would help to boost his value. That didn’t exactly happen. By the end of the year, he was a frequent healthy scratch and managed to post just 11 points. While that was still an upgrade on his final season with the Flames, it was still well short of expectations. Even though the 26-year-old is only owed a qualifying offer of the league minimum, it seems quite likely that the 21st pick from 2012 will be looking for a new home at the end of the month.
Other RFAs: F Kasper Bjorkqvist, G Emil Larmi, D Jesper Lindgren, F Sam Miletic, F Radim Zohorna
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
D Cody Ceci – Another player that looked to Pittsburgh to restore some value, Ceci was able to do just that as he quickly became an important piece on the third pairing. He chipped in a bit offensively with 17 points in 53 games while logging over 18 minutes a night. Those numbers don’t jump off the charts but after being miscast in a top-four role with Ottawa and Toronto, Ceci fared much better with a more limited role. GM Ron Hextall indicated a desire to re-sign the veteran recently but acknowledged that they will need to trim payroll to do so. After playing on a $1.25MM deal this past season, the 27-year-old has earned a small raise but barring the Penguins clearing out a pricey contract, it looks like Ceci will have to go elsewhere to get that pay increase.
F Evan Rodrigues – After Pittsburgh traded him to Toronto back in August, he wound up being non-tendered and went back for a second stint with the Penguins. This one went a little better even though it got off to a rocky start when he landed on LTIR early in the season. Overall, he saw considerable action on the third line and averaged just over 14 minutes per game while chipping in with seven goals and seven assists in 35 games. He’s not looking at a significant raise from the $700K he made this season but another couple hundred thousand could be doable.
F Frederick Gaudreau – This one may seem like a surprise. Gaudreau is 27 and had eight career NHL points heading into this season. He only played in 19 games this season but very quietly put up ten points, earning himself a regular spot in the lineup in the playoffs. Are there teams that will give him a shot at a full-time roster spot based on his strong two months? If so, there should be a fair bit of interest in his services.
Other UFAs: D Kevin Czuczman, G Maxime Lagace, F Colton Sceviour
Projected Cap Space
Well, there really isn’t a lot. Today’s deal with Teddy Blueger takes Pittsburgh within $1MM of the Upper Limit of the salary cap with at least one more forward to sign to fill out the roster. That’s not even enough to re-sign Aston-Reese so some work will need to be done. If Seattle takes a higher-priced player, Hextall would have some wiggle room to play with but otherwise, it could be a fairly quiet summer for the Penguins.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
They will protect ZAR and leave nothing but contracts over 4mil avail for the draft. Would not be shocked to see Petterson moved and who ever isn’t drafted by SEA. Could easily see Tanev, Zucker and McCann along with Petterson not back next season
Um Tanev and McCann aren’t going anywhere…
Tanev 100% will not be protected and it will be a shame if he is taken.
Bluegar’s extension likely represents that McCann will be left unprotected instead.
Hextall needs Seattle to take on some salary, so leaving it between McCann, Zuck & Petersson guarantees some cap relief.
Losing McCann would be rough, but honestly Zuck is similar player , so pens will take cap relief where they can get it.
Whoops meant tanev 100% will be protected/ will not be exposed
Zero chance they expose Jarry. Why would they do that? To protect who? A backup they are probably trading for a sixth round pick if they are lucky?
Near zero chance they expose McCann. Why would they do that? He’s young and good.
The best thing to happen for the Pens so far this summer is the chance that JVR and Oshie get protected. If so, Zucker becomes a legitimately attractive option for Seattle (maybe the best winger available at that point) and becomes their likely pick.
Losing him instead of Blueger would be great, though they could slide Gaudreau into his spot also.
Then trade Pettersson for whatever. Resign Ceci. Find that veteran 1B for Jarry. Bring up Poulin and Joseph. Upgrade Rodrigues’ spot and push him into the 13th forward role.
Totally agree on Jarry. I heard a few guys mention this and to me it makes zero sense. So young to be giving up on a stud Goalie. He’s a lock for protection.
The troll who pretends to be a reporter, Rob Rossi, put the “Pens might not protect Jarry” thought out there and some people have repeated it assuming that a Pens beat writer must know something they don’t.
What they don’t know is that Rob Rossi is useless.
In his first season as a starter, Jarry had a bad month or so to start the year, got right and was lights out the rest of the season, then had a bad week in the playoffs (at the wrong time, sure).
The idea that the Pens would give up on a goalie (who they just signed long term) based on the above scenario (especially when they have no other possible starters in the entire system) is so absurd that you have to question either the motives (and/or cognitive abilities) of those who claim it.
Getting a veteran to push him is a good plan, though.
I’ve got a perfectly good reason to expose Jarry: that short of the Lightning, Pittsburgh’s in the worst cap hell in the league. They need every PENNY they can scrounge just to fill out the roster, and Jarry’s got a cap hit nearly three times that of DeSmith. (Tell me that Seattle wouldn’t pick DeSmith as one of their goalies if he’s the one exposed.) And it was more than a “bad month or so” — as late as the second week of March, Jarry had a GAA of 3.14, a save percentage or .894 and just barely a winning record. He certainly had a hot streak, but he’s no more invulnerably good than most Pens fans prayed a fellow named Murray was just a handful of seasons back. Y’know, a guy they signed to the same length of contract as Jarry’s, and for more money yet, and a fair bit younger than Jarry is now, and with Cup rings to boot. While we’re questioning motives or cognitive abilities.
I mean seriously, this is Tristan Jarry we’re talking about. The guy who’s had just one good season, platooning with Murray. He’s sure not worthless, but he’s sure as hell not proven himself the second coming of Martin Brodeur either. Tanking the first two months of the season AND tanking in the playoffs is not a great sign, guys.
So honestly, if I’m Pittsburgh’s GM, I expose Jarry, hope Seattle takes him (but no objections if they don’t), I trade Pettersson for whatever pick anyone will give me and buy him out if I can’t, and that’ll at least get me the cap space to fill out the roster. Better than that will have to wait until next year, when Geno’s contract comes off the books.
So, because he’s not Brodeur and because the Pens need cap space that can be found elsewhere, you would dump a young goalie who has shown All Star potential? Or because potential is not certainty (and Murry flopped) then just flush potential and dumpster dive for goalies ensuring a failed season?
…K.
I’d keep Jarry. As will the Pens.
Sure, if there wasn’t an expansion draft, keep Jarry. If Pittsburgh wasn’t in desperate cap hell, keep Jarry. Only problem is that this is a team with only eleven forwards under contract, and just $1 million available. The Pens are already faced with losing Ceci, Gaudreau and other useful roleplayers because they can’t afford more than league minimum for anybody, and have to do something like buy out Pettersson to be able to do that much. (Heck, the situation is so bad that next year, Hextall has to give serious thought to just waving goodbye to Malkin, and we all know how popular THAT would be with the fan base.)
So go ahead. Tell me what moves you make.
OK, but who’s playing goalie? Phil Bourque?
Lose Zucker or Pettersson to Seattle, trade the other. Resign Ceci. Trade DeSmith. Sign a 1B insurance policy. Promote Poulin and Joseph. Sign Corey Perry. Resign Gaudreau and Rodrigues to cheap depth deals.
The other goalie on the roster, for pity’s sake … doesn’t take a brain surgeon to remember you’ve got more than one there. That and there are plenty of inexpensive goalies out there.
As far as your other moves, trading guys on expensive contracts works only so far as you have GMs willing to take them off of your hands. No one’s going to trade jack for Pettersson without swapping salary back, and the Pens can’t afford that. Corey Perry will want a fair bit, and the Pens can’t afford that. Gaudreau just might feel that someone will give him more than league minimum based on last season, and the Pens can’t afford that. Ceci definitely will want a raise, and the Pens can’t afford that. Don’t take my word for it: go to Puckpedia and look at the cap hell Pittsburgh is in for yourself.
I will say that there is one possible, but sadly unlikely, scenario that could result in Jarry not being protected…trading for Fleury.
Foley wants to keep MAF and probably will, but…if he does move, that changes things.
I like ZAR and Hallander to see increased roles to fill out the bottom 6.
Defense should be fine with POJ coming up but some cheap depth might be necessary depending on how they view Friedman & Rikkola.
Bringing back Ceci would be nice, but he’s not worth more than 3.5 cap hit.
Really just need a GK and some grit. Nothing much changes after the McCann trade and tanev pick. Hopefully youth can replace some depth on the bottom 2 lines, but could use some veteran PK guys
Pens are stacked down the middle even if geno goes down for a little again.
Top 6 should produce. Defense is good if not great.
Really just need that GK and some common sense depth moves